World

Global tourism achieved full recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic in 2024, with 1.4 billion international tourist arrivals recorded worldwide, according to the UN World Tourism Organization (UNWTO). This marked an 11% increase from 2023 and matched the 2019 pre-pandemic levels.…

The 2025 World Economic Forum (WEF) Annual Meeting began on Monday, January 20, in Davos, Switzerland, highlighting the need for global collaboration amid ongoing uncertainties, Xinhua reported. Under the theme “Collaboration for the Intelligent Age,” this five-day event has attracted…

The price of Bitcoin surged past $109,000 on Monday, marking an all-time high, Anadolu Agency reported. Over the past 24 hours, the largest cryptocurrency experienced a low of $99,400 and a peak of $109,110. Prior to the US elections in…

Billionaires’ wealth increased significantly in 2024, with a report from Oxfam International revealing that their fortunes grew three times faster than the previous year. The total wealth of billionaires rose by $2 trillion, averaging approximately $5.7 billion per day, bringing…

Dozens of Uyghur men detained in Thailand have entered the second week of a hunger strike, protesting against what they fear is imminent deportation to China, where they could face torture and imprisonment, New York Times reported. The detainees began…

Australia has permitted the import of thousands of products from Chinese companies blacklisted by the US over allegations of forced labor linked to the Uyghur minority, The Guardian reported. Since 2020, over 3,300 import declarations have identified these companies as…

Human Rights Watch (HRW) released its World Report 2025, noting a year of significant yet uneven progress for democracy and human rights in the Asia-Pacific region. The report highlights encouraging signs, including citizen activism in India, Bangladesh, and South Korea,…

The United Nations reports that more than 230,000 people have been displaced in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) since the start of 2025, marking one of the world’s most alarming humanitarian crises, Al Jazeera reported. The UN refugee agency,…

China’s population decreased for the third straight year, reaching 1.408 billion at the end of 2024, a decline of 1.39 million from the previous year, Arab News reported. This trend poses significant challenges for the government and economy, as the…

Kazakhstan launched the region’s first Shariah-compliant exchange-traded fund (ETF), the ITSS, on January 14, marking a significant milestone in Islamic finance, The Astana Times reported. The ETF, listed on the Astana International Exchange, aims to replicate the performance of the…